3 Times That Éponine Noticed Cosette & 1 Time Cosette Noticed Éponine
by Natalie Nallareet
Summary: Éponine notices Cosette just after Marius does, the young women a breath from 'Ponine's past and although she tries to ignore how Cosette makes her feel, she keeps cropping up into her life, until finally Cosette notices Éponine as well. Cosette/Éponine.


**A/C **The night after seeing the production live, this little plot bunny plopped into my mind and I wrote it that very night. Based off of scenes that actually happened in the version I saw. Four scenes, each about 500 words.

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**1. Éponine**

At first, the person kneeling on the ground hadn't been Éponine's focus-there was enough going on in the background without even a face popping out to her. There was the robbery going on below, her parents at their work trying to get a few coins through their begging. She, of course, was supposed to be looking out for the law, not at all focused on the scene or people below her. However, she couldn't at least let her eyes flicker to below. Marius was there, and she didn't want him to look over and see exactly what her parents were getting her to help with. Luckily, though, his focus wasn't on Éponine's parents, instead on the woman in front of him, his eyes locked into her gaze.

Éponine froze, all else fading away as she caught sight of the girl. The recognition wasn't immediate, but as Éponine's eyes traced down her jaw bone, flicked from her cheeks to her hair, to her large blue eyes, she couldn't help but feel as if she knew the young woman. A shiver flew through Éponine, her eyes just as focused on the woman below her as Marius. Oh, it was her. Éponine gasped slightly at the realisation, her breath caught on the nostalgia. Cosette had always been more beautiful, even when dressed in rags as a little child. It wasn't with bitterness that she reflected upon this; in fact, instead it made her stomach twist with a sort of lightness that she can't identify. It may have been ridiculous that she even remembered Cosette, much less could spot her as a grown woman, but she had never been a person who Éponine could forget. The lark, the little angel of the dust who had been brought away by a man who showed her more care in the few minutes he was there then Éponine's parents had shown her in her entire life. It was a simple truth; Éponine just couldn't forget Cosette. Seeing her now, so happy and whole from her rich life, caused such emotion to stir within Éponine, a complete twist of envy, guilt, happiness, and something far worse that she couldn't identify. The unnamed emotion wasn't even something she could shove into a label that felt similar, as it was like nothing she had ever encountered before-it wasn't sadness but it most definitely wasn't happiness-it was large and dark and complicated. Éponine didn't know why she treasured such an emotion.

Éponine was so focused on Cosette, that she nearly missed the very thing she was looking for. Luckily, she looked up just long enough to look down the street to see a police officer strutting her way.

"It's the police! Disappear! Run for it! It's Javert!" she called out in warning, hollering across the street as the man himself appeared. Éponine watched everyone scurry about below her, ants fleeing from a puddle that could so easily drown them out. She received a stab of relief and guilt all at once while seeing them scatter. Relief because she watched Cosette and her adopted father immediately depart from the scene; guilt because she should be more concerned about her family, who were now all being held by the police. And yet still, the unnamed emotion lingered, biting away at her as she hid herself from view.

**2. Éponine**

Éponine hadn't known how to approach Cosette after spotting her from her bird's eye view. Honestly, she didn't think she should be trying to make contact with her at all. Éponine may not have understood all the conflicting emotions within her towards the light-haired young woman, but she knew that emotional connections to anyone were a dangerous thing, much more so when they were this knotted and complicated. Still, Marius had asked for her to find where Cosette was living, so Éponine would go about and find out despite her inner turmoil.

Tracing Cosette back to her home was easy enough-Éponine knew her way around these parts to the point where she literally couldn't get lost. Even before setting out, she had a place in mind that may be where Cosette lived. She was right, of course-Marius wouldn't care that she had put such cleverness into her task, but she pretended she didn't care.

Éponine slipped up to the edge of the gate, her slim hands slipping through the bars and wrapping upon their iron grip. For a moment, Éponine just sat there, feasting her eyes on the delicate garden that pooled out in front of her beyond the stone wall of protection. Reaching out, she could almost pretend that she lived there, waking up in the large house with the balcony view of the city and such a lush garden every morning. Éponine had never had a proper home like this one, or even a poor excuse of one. She had lived in places, but it took a certain welcoming touch for it to be a home. Therefore, it was just as easy to believe she had any house at all as it was to believe that this was her own.

A shift of movement distracted her pondering, and Éponine's eyes flew up to land upon the balcony. The lone figure of Cosette had walked out upon it, shifting her weight upon the sturdy railings as the door shut behind her with a gentle click. Cosette didn't see Éponine below, still frozen at the gate, but instead cast her gaze upwards towards the sky, her slim shoulders easing up and down with a drawn out sigh. Éponine decided she really was remarkably beautiful-but in such a warm, friendly way. Éponine had seen so many lovely women and men, rich with beauty, but more often they seemed so cold and aloof in their beauty, to the point of seeming almost plastic. Cosette was not like that, instead appearing so warmly embracing, even approachable. Despite this, Éponine didn't let herself call out, but instead contented herself by staying at the gate until Cosette had gone back inside. Only then did Éponine finally leave.

**3. Éponine**

On her way back to Cosette's house, Éponine finally was struck by an alarming thought. The unnamable feeling wasn't completely new. With her breathing escalating, Éponine realized that for some strange reason she cared about Cosette. It made no sense; Éponine had hardly talked to the young girl, but still she felt she didn't want anything to happen to her. With this, she found that must be what the emotions were, a very frightening thought indeed. Éponine decided it was best to just ignore this for now; she felt that diving deeper into those emotions might just come to pain.

"Coming, Éponine?" Marius called, ingin confusion as he glanced back at her. Right, she had been leading him to Cosette. His world hadn't been spun into such confusion; to him, she had stopped for no good reason at all. Éponine decided that he must stay in that mind set.

"'Course," she murmured in response, letting a smile creep across his face. She couldn't concentrate on the fact that leading him there might lead to losing him and any possibility with Cosette. She couldn't even touch on such a possibility, even though that was the thought that swarmed her mind. Anyways, she couldn't let such feelings show. She continued onwards, easily running ahead of him, to the home she'd been at the gate of mere minutes ago.

"Éponine, you're the friend who has brought me here. Thanks to you, I am one with the gods and heaven is near!" Marius announced, twirling her around on the spot. He continued to talk, but she couldn't force herself to keep listening. With each syllable, the weight of this moment became a heavier burden on her shoulder, every word that he said a dagger within her. Both Marius and Cosette had no need to even contact her after they had each other; they would probably leave her life all together. Everyone who mattered to her did in the end.

Suddenly, Éponine once again found her attention brought to the balcony upon seeing Cosette appear. This time, her eyes were steered towards the gate, such delight in her gaze. Of course, she only had eyes for Marius who stepped forwards, bringing himself over the large stone wall that separated them. Instead of following his lead, Éponine gave into the inevitable and ducked her head completely out of view. Éponine could see from her gaze that Cosette already loved Marius, she didn't want to see them rejoice in their love, as selfish of a need as that was. Éponine bitterly realized that Cosette probably wouldn't even recognize her if she got a proper look at her. Besides, even if she did, Cosette would probably hate her for the connection. No matter what, Éponine knew she was foolish to expect anything good, and rather than exposing herself, she protected herself from such possibilities of pain.

**1. Cosette**

Cosette emerged to the front of the house with Marius in tail, brought forwards by the harsh feminine scream. There had been shouts, too, angry masculine voices whose owners now hurried to the streets, barely visible from behind the protection of the stone wall. The woman who had screamed, though, still lay in the yard. She was a crumpled heap, collapsed to the ground with her hair strewn about her shoulders and falling down onto the ground. Cosette was struck by how pathetic and small she looked, such a petite woman who couldn't have been much older than she was herself. What had brought her to Cosette's yard? What had caused her to fall so?

Cosette rushed ahead of Marius, sprinting to the young women's side, where she knelt. Tentatively, Cosette brushed her hand forwards onto her shoulder, trying to help her up to a sitting position.

The woman jerked up, her eyes meeting Cosette's gaze, holding it intently. Cosette noted a fresh gash upon her face, but not before she realized in surprise that she knew this woman. It took Cosette a moment to locate how she knew her, but soon realized that she was a face that swam up through the harsh memories of childhood, before her papa had come and brought her away. Cosette hardly remembered anything about this childhood girl, but was able to string the single name Éponine to her. Feeling like she should help this poor injured girl in some way, Cosette took a corner of her dress and brought it up to wipe at her injury, cleaning the small amount of blood that was trickling down it. Cosette didn't know what to say, unsure whether Éponine recognized her or who they were to each other in the past. Luckily, Marius filled the silence with his own words of relief as Cosette helped her to her feet.

"It was your cry that sent them away," Marius breathed, his words jumbling together in his unease. "Once more, 'Ponine saving the day. Dearest Cosette, my friend 'Ponine brought me to you, showed me the way." Oddly, Marius forced himself between the two of them, blocking their intent eyes that hadn't broken from each other since Éponine looked up. Marius suddenly looked back towards Cosette's home in a slight panic that melted together with his earlier babble. "Someone is near, let's not be seen. Someone is here..." He grabbed at Éponine's hand and dashed through the gates and out of sight.

Hardly a second had gone by when her Papa hurriedly came into view, stricken with worry. It was a pity, really; Cosette would have liked to meet Éponine further. There was something distinctly intriguing about her, but now she probably would never discover what that was. No matter, Éponine was Marius's friend; it was likely that they'd see each other once again someday. She could only hope that she was right.


End file.
